The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what his Department’s wellness strategy is.
Alun Cairns
The Wales Office is not an employer in its own right and staff are subject to Ministry of Justice (MOJ) policies for issues such as wellness.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2016-03-22.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 15 March (HL6859), whether the number of Home Office officials seconded to the Interior Ministry’s Dublin Unit in Paris will increase.
Lord Keen of Elie
The case for seconding UK experts to the Interior Ministry’s Dublin Unit is under review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-04-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to section 2.28 of the White Paper, Educational excellence everywhere, published in March 2016, by what criteria her Department will assess which higher education institutions are assessed as the best universities for education and teacher training.
Nick Gibb
Our recent White Paper made a commitment to raising the quality of initial teacher training so that teaching continues to be a profession that attracts the brightest and the best. We want to ensure that training places are allocated to providers – both schools and universities – with a proven track record of effectively recruiting high-quality trainees, delivering high-quality programmes of training, and securing the best possible outcomes for trainees.
We will be setting out further detail of our plans to implement these reforms shortly. This will include confirming details of the quality criteria that we intend to use to inform the allocation of places to universities and schools for the training year 2017/18. We are currently holding discussions with stakeholders, including ITT providers and their representative bodies, to inform the development of appropriate criteria.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Zac Goldsmith on 2016-06-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what technical assistance her Department has offered to the government of the Pitcairn Islands to help ensure that its draft biosecurity legislation meets best practice.
Rory Stewart
The UK Government is committed to assisting our Overseas Territories (OTs) in protecting their biodiversity. Territory Governments are constitutionally responsible for the conservation of their natural environments and we work in partnership with them to provide support, including through access to technical advice, expertise and training and through the Overseas Territories Climate and Environment Programme (Darwin Plus).
Preventing the establishment of invasive alien species and eradicating or controlling invasive species is one of our priorities in supporting biodiversity conservation in the OTs. Defra has funded various projects on biosecurity, bio-control and the spread of non-native species in the OTs, including an RSPB-led Darwin Plus project which included work to improve Pitcairn’s biosecurity legislation. Defra officials stand ready to consider any requests from Pitcairn’s Government for technical assistance, advice or expertise on biosecurity matters or in respect of Pitcairn’s biosecurity legislation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to create more cohesive societies in areas with dispersal centres for asylum seekers.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Home Office funds strategic migration partnerships which are local authority-led partnerships designed to provide structures and support services for those organisations working with migrants and refugees in local communities.
The Home Office also provides a dedicated integration loan directly to recognised refugees. The loan is designed to help refugees integrate into UK society by offering financial support towards housing costs, employment and training.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2016-10-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he made an estimate of the number of foreign companies employing migrant workers in the UK who have sued their employees for overpayment of wages upon their return to their country of origin.
Damian Hinds
DWP has received no representations on migrant employees in the UK being forced to repay funds paid to them as a result of shortfalls in wages to their employers upon return to their country of origin.
DWP has not made an estimate of the number of foreign companies employing migrant workers in the UK who have sued their employees for overpayment of wages upon their return to their country of origin.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-01-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many jobs in (a) her Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies, executive agencies, non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies (i) have been abolished or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent since 2010 and (ii) will be abolished in or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent by 2020.
George Eustice
The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, its executive agencies non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies have no offices in Stoke-on-Trent, and therefore no jobs have been abolished since 2010 nor are any to be abolished or relocated by 2020.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Crausby on 2016-02-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress his Department has made on improving access to specialist psychology support for people with muscle-wasting conditions.
Jane Ellison
With regards to the National Health Service in Scotland, as healthcare is a devolved issue, the Department cannot comment.
NHS England commissions specialised neurological services at a national level, including those with muscle-wasting conditions. The neurosciences service specification sets out what designated specialised providers must have in place to offer evidence-based, safe and effective care. Patients should have access to a multidisciplinary team (MDT) to assess, diagnose and provide support. The MDT will include neuromuscular consultants, neuromuscular physiotherapists, psychologists, specialist nurses, occupational therapists, speech and language therapists and other health professionals.
The specification further sets out that neuromuscular clinics need to identify those at risk of respiratory problems and refer for specialist respiratory assessment and monitoring.
The specification can be found at the following link:
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/d04-neurosci-spec-neuro.pdf
A separate specification covers services for children.
www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/e09-paedi-neurology.pdf
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the illustrative rota number 15 for junior doctors published by NHS Employers on 18 February 2016, for what reasons that rota requires junior doctors to work on consecutive weekends; whether rota 15 has been updated since its original publication; and whether the illustrative rotas will provide for more junior doctors to be on duty at weekends than there are at present.
Ben Gummer
Only a small number of junior doctors currently work one weekend in two and NHS Employers agreed with the British Medical Association (BMA) that they would work together to move towards no junior doctor working more than one weekend in three as part of an agreed future contract review process. No junior doctor will be required to work consecutive weekends. The illustrative rota concerned has been adjusted to reflect this. However, the BMA said in negotiation that doctors working very frequent weekends would prefer the flexibility to group weekends of work together in order to group weekends off. This will be possible by agreement under the new contract.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-03-21.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 5 February 2016 to Question 24869, whether the (a) Royal Bank of Scotland, (b) Bradford and Bingley and c) Northern Rock banks have received any public funding since they were taken into public ownership.
Harriett Baldwin
In 2008 and 2009 HM Treasury made a number of interventions to support institutions including Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Bradford & Bingley and Northern Rock.
Full details of the funds used and outstanding balances can be found at the Office of Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) website and at UK Financial Investments’ (UKFI) website:-
http://budgetresponsibility.org.uk/
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